


Knock His Socks Off

by Runadaemon



Series: Fluff Week 2020 [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste Watches Anime, Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng Fluff, Confident Marinette Dupain-Cheng, F/M, Fluff and Crack, Flustered Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Hot Mess Adrien Agreste, Jealous Lila Rossi, Love Square Fluff Week 2020, Marinette cannot ignore a fashion disaster, Marinette helps, Protective Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, attempts seduction, but Marinette is merciful, fails
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-07
Updated: 2020-03-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:47:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22594273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Runadaemon/pseuds/Runadaemon
Summary: Please blame Galahadwilder for this. He said: Imagine an AU where Marinette didn’t know Adrien liked anime, and then one day she finds out and immediately goes “I KNOW HOW TO MAKE HIM HAVE A HEART ATTACK” and comes to class the next day wearing kneesocks.... Adrien has to go to the nurse for nosebleeds......I delivered.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Fluff Week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1625758
Comments: 60
Kudos: 923





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [GalahadWilder](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GalahadWilder/gifts).



> If you think of any additional tags I need, please let me know. I'm still learning the tags. I hope you enjoy!

Concert (Attire):

It was a regular Monday. The sun was shining, Adrien was required to eat at home alone, and Marinette was third-wheeling on Nino and Alya’s ‘not-a-date’ once more. Trying to remain inconspicuous and let them have ‘couple time,’ Marinette often kept herself busy on days like this designing while she ate. Today, Marinette tuned into Alya and Nino’s conversation at the very end of it, busy drawing a new outfit design for her cousin.   
  


“....and I couldn’t believe all the first edition sets of anime he’s got hidden away. He has multiple copies, Alya. ‘Just in case’ he said.” Nino shrugged. “Do you think I should talk to him about it? No one needs THAT much CLAMP in their life. Especially Adrien. Dude’s already dramatic enough.” 

Marinette’s head shot up. “Adrien likes CLAMP?” Marinette spoke fast, in an urgent tone. Alya and Nino exchanged startled glances before nodding at her. Alya’s hazel eyes were wide in wonder, and Nino’s eyes were narrowed in suspicion. It wasn’t often Marinette looked so intent outside of gaming.

An unholy grin spread across Marinette’s face. Nino blindly reached for Alya’s hand, seeking comfort. Alya absently patted his hand with her other, eyes stuck on her bff and the victorious expression on her face. Alya felt the burning ‘scoop’ deep within her soul, but manfully held it back, determined to be a friend first.   
  


“I’ve got him now.” Marinette whispered to herself in glee. An exuberant grin grew across her face as Marinette jumped up. “I need to go change. See you guys in class!” Marinette left, clutching her drawing pad and pencils, but forgetting her backpack and school materials.   
  
Alya and Nino could still hear Marinette cackling as they huddled closer. They faintly heard something along the lines of “I KNOW HOW TO MAKE HIM HAVE A HEART ATTACK!” in the distance.

“What just happened?”

“I don’t know....”

Alya and Nino were chatting nervously with Adrien when Marinette walked back into the classroom after lunch. They had wordlessly brought Marinette’s materials to class and placed them on her desk for her. Adrien had been confused when they came in with them, but smilingly shrugged it off, intent on telling them about the newest meme he’d seen.

Alya and Nino had front row seats to the “Paris’ Teen’s hottest model” nearly swallowing his tongue as he choked on his words and trailed into silence when Marinette greeted him. Adrien turned with a smile, but it was pretty clear he’d stopped breathing.

Adrien’s eyes were locked onto the soft strip of skin showing between Marinette’s baby pink skirt and black cat-themed thigh high socks. Alya muttered to Nino as discreetly as she could. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Marinette’s thighs before.” Nino nodded wordlessly, pink in the face and unwilling to admit the same.

Adrien promptly covered the lower half of his face as he turned cherry red, before falling back in his seat, unconscious. To her class’s astonishment, rather than running forward to see if Adrien was okay (he’d obviously passed out from lack of oxygen), Marinette did a victorious fist pump. She even included a small hip wiggle that showed off a tantalizing inch more of her thigh as she danced around.   
  
“Yes! I can do this!” Marinette grinned cheerfully, completely oblivious to the chaos that had descended upon the classroom. Nino sighed and silently looped Adrien’s arm over his shoulder to escort him to the nurse. Alya patted him on the back as she gathered Adrien’s things back into his backpack.  
  
Marinette waved cheerfully as they passed her by, before prancing into her seat with a grin. Alya glanced around the room, taking in the various states of discombobulated students before raising a judgmental eyebrow at her best friend.

“What?” Marinette asked with a grin. “I was never going to capture his heart with my conversation. This way, he’ll come to me without my having to say a word!”   
  
And so the countdown began. Alya took bets, Nino bought iron supplements and headache medicine, and Adrien... languished.

****************

“You don’t understand!” Adrien ranted to a cackling Plagg, days later. “First it was the adorable k-k-k-kitty socks! Then it was stockings with intricate lace at the top! And then the ribbons on the back of her legs lacing up made me just want to unravel them! I could handle the bells on the socks yesterday. But today....” Plagg nearly choked on his camembert at the haunted expression his holder displayed.   
  
“Today,” Adrien whispered. “She was dressed for Kitty Section’s concert. In my neon green!” Adrien buried his head in his arms at his desk, absently setting his phone down. Plagg was amused to note several stalker-ish photos of Marinette’s legs prominently displayed on the screen. Plagg would have been concerned if he hadn’t seen Marinette’s smug grin and subtle posturing while Adrien was ‘sneaking’ photos. Plagg awkwardly patted Adrien on the head.   
  
“Why does she have to look so good in everything?” Adrien groaned. “I know I love Ladybug, but Marinette is absolutely killing me. Do you know how many times I’ve been sent to the doctor now?” Adrien ranted as he raised his head. “My Father actually let up on my workload! He didn’t even do that when I was sick with the flu!”   
  
Plagg personally thought everything was going even better than pigtail girl realized. Less work for Adrien meant more rest time for him, and Adrien being obsessed with Marinette’s new wardrobe made hiding Ladybug’s identity easier every day. Everything was coming up roses, it seemed.   
  


“So what’s the problem then?” Plagg asked. “It’s not like you could do normal dating with Ladybug anyway, and she’s already rejected you. Why not give Marinette a chance?”

Adrien opened his mouth to argue before silently closing it, looking thoughtful. “I’ll look for a sign.” Adrien decided. Plagg stared at him, nonplussed. Maybe Adrien really had lost too much blood this past week.

“If I should date Marinette, I’ll look for a sign! If I can’t find a sign, then I’ll stick with Ladybug!” Adrien sounded determined and it took all Plagg had to not hit him.

THEY’RE THE SAME PERSON, Plagg wanted to scream. Instead, he treated himself to another slice of cheese. He wasn’t going to be eating bubbles again if he could help it. 

  
******************************

Plagg was unsurprised when Adrien ended up in the nurse’s office before 1st period even started. He grimly glanced over at the green paw prints painstakingly hand sewn into the black tights that fit snugly across the bakery girl’s legs. He had to hand it to her. As far as signs went, that was a neon green ‘Go’ sign for his kitten.  
  


Marinette was actually carrying Adrien this time, Nino having thrown a fit at Marinette’s antics. Personally, Plagg felt like she’d gone overkill this time, but she’d definitely gotten Adrien’s attention. Plagg was certain Adrien would take those tights as the ‘sign from God’ he’d been looking for. As Marinette gently lowered Adrien to the nurse’s bed, Plagg was unsurprised when Adrien groggily reached for Marinette’s hands.

“Please be my girlfriend, Marinette.” Adrien’s voice had a soft pleading note in it, and not a little desperation. Marinette squeaked silently before frantically nodding yes. “Thank goodness.” Adrien sighed in relief. He leaned forward, resting his forehead against Marinette’s.

“May I kiss you?” He softly asked. Marinette flushed, before giving a tiny nod with a smile. As Adrien leaned in to kiss Marinette, Plagg wondered if this would stop the constant nosebleeds, or just increase them. By Marinette’s happy expression, Plagg was pretty sure she’d be happy to wear skirts for the rest of her life. Plagg sighed. At least Adrien would die happy. 


	2. Another Contender Challenges the Champion!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> FaithandaTypeWriter got my inspiration up, and I finally had some time to write, so I present: 
> 
> Lila has caught on to Marinette's tactic. 
> 
> If the dumb wanna be designer can do it, surely she can do it even better. 
> 
> Alternatively, Lila tries, Marinette takes pity on her, and Adrien stans his girlfriend.

Socks Part II

After a month of the cutest sweetheart couple cuddling and cooing over each other in happy anime-esque bliss, Lila finally clued in to the change in Marinette’s wardrobe. Marinette often wore thigh high socks with short skirts, and every. Single. Time. Adrien had an incredible response. Sometimes he fainted, sometimes he got a nosebleed, and sometimes he just stared at her dopily with an infatuated grin.

Lila was certain it was due to Marinette’s outfit. Lila cursed herself for never wearing such cutesy outfits before, but after a few quick and expensive online shopping trips, and the subsequent wait, she was finally ready to wow Adrien. She was determined to seduce him back to her side by hook or crook. The thigh high socks were her hook. Lila hadn’t figured out the crook option just yet. Maybe she’d blackmail him into dating her. It might work.

Monday morning, exactly a month and three days after losing the fight for Adrien’s heart to Marinette, Lila dressed with utmost care. She was certain the draw of Marinette’s outfit was in the strip of skin between the socks and the skirt. Lila contemplated her skirt for a few minutes, slowly edging it up until the skirt skimmed the bottom of her underwear. The thigh highs stopped a good 7 cm above her knees, so this left a large gap of about 20 cm for Adrien to appreciate. Go big or go home, right?

Lila swirled her hips back and forth, satisfied at the very brief peeks of her underwear, a very sexy red lace number she’d snuck in when shopping with her mother a few months ago. The deep red was very noticeable against the stark black mini-skirt with the solid white trim at the bottom. There was no way Adrien wouldn’t notice the flash when she ‘dropped’ something today.

Lila frowned at the socks, unhappy at how loose they felt. She shouldn’t have expected so much from online stores, apparently. All of the socks were oddly loose, and Lila worried they might fall down at some point. She shook her leg experimentally. The sock scooted downward incrementally. Lila shrugged, optimistically deciding it would be a great excuse to bend over if it happened around Adrien.

Grabbing her bag, Lila quickly left for school, holding her skirt down over her bottom when older men leered at her. Lila had been so focused on catching Adrien’s attention she’d forgotten the very real danger of predatory men on her way to school. With a frown, she tugged her skirt lower so it covered her assets a little more firmly. She could always raise it back up once she was safely at school.

Arriving at the front gate, Lila had a front row view of Adrien gushing over Marinette’s new socks as they ambled toward the school building. Lila disdainfully sneered at the frolicking kittens running across Marinette’s legs as she inched her skirt higher once more. It was show time!

“Oh, Good morning Adrien~!” Lila called as she ran forward, and reached an arm out to ‘accidentally’ shove Marinette away and take her place. To her shock, Marinette fell back a step and twirled in place, allowing the skirt to raise a bit as she spun right into Adrien’s arms as Lila sailed past. With the lack of resistance, Lila fell forward onto her hands and knees.

“I’m so glad these socks are thick.” Lila muttered to herself. She took a moment to realize her underwear was probably on display and immediately perked her bottom more prominently. ‘Accidentally’ striking a ‘sexy’ pose, she turned to pout up at Adrien and complain about Marinette.

To Lila’s shock, the people ogling her assets were all various boys and men she didn’t care to remember. Two boys from her class helped her up, and she smiled apologetically. She exclaimed about how embarrassed she was even as she made no effort to lower her skirt, smiling and easily looping her hands around their arms.

Lila unsubtly looked for her target, only to find him almost to the top of the stairs of the school, cuddled around Marinette as they smiled dreamily at each other. They were even walking at the exact same pace, just like overly love obsessed idiot couples tended to do.

Lila silently gaped for a minute. If they were that far away, there was no way Adrien had seen Lila’s show. Lila followed behind, seething at the couple and ignoring the other hormonal boys attempting to talk to her while escorting her to class. Lila discreetly stared in the locker room as Adrien grinned down at an obviously fake-bashful Marinette, cornering her against her locker and stealing a silly juvenile kiss.

Lila nearly swam in indignation. That was Lila’s spot! Adrien should be stealing Lila’s kisses, not that baker girl’s! Lila slammed her locker closed, gaining attention from everyone in her area except the one boy she’d been trying to attract. Marinette glanced over at her, apparently startled enough to actually look Lila over. Lila preened, anticipating the fear Marinette would feel once she saw her competition.

Marinette’s eyes caught on Lila’s socks and skirt, and the smug grin slowly fell away as Marinette grimaced. Marinette didn’t look threatened at all. In fact, Marinette almost looked as though she pitied Lila. Marinette leaned over and whispered to Adrien, who then turned to Lila, blinking as though seeing her for the first time.

Lila couldn’t believe Marinette would bring Adrien’s attention to her competition so easily. Striking a pose and sashaying her hips as hard as she could, Lila strutted toward the couple. If Marinette was going to give him away, Lila would happily take him.

“Good morning, A.D.R.I.E.N” Lila purred, enunciating his name as seductively as possible. Adrien’s gaze remained on her legs with a mildly repulsed expression. He muttered an intelligible reply in greeting. Lila reached to take his arm, but Marinette casually moved into her path, and Lila had to retract her hand quickly to avoid groping Marinette. Marinette gave her a polite smile.

“Good morning Lila. Are your legs alright?” Marinette asked, obviously faux-innocently. Lila frowned, glancing down to see why Adrien wasn’t looking up. He didn’t look nearly as pleased as he always did when Marinette wore these useless socks. To Lila’s shock, her knees were covered in a dark gray grime. The pure white of her thick, beautiful wool socks was ruined.

“Oh my goodness!” Lila exclaimed. Turning furious eyes to Marinette, Lila pointed to her with a snarl. “This is all your fault!” She yelled. The entire area hushed. Marinette and Adrien stared at Lila incredulously.

“What?” Marinette asked, completely baffled. “I haven’t even seen you until now. How could I mess up your legs?” Lila bristled when Adrien nodded in agreement. The bystanders stared on, and Lila took a steadying breath. She could use this.

Lila burst into sobs, careful to cover her eyes from everyone else, but carefully watching Adrien’s reaction. “You’re so mean, Marinette! I didn’t do anything to you, but you shoved me in front of the school and knocked me down!” Adrien frowned unhappily, but continued to stare at Lila. Lila nearly hissed in vexation. Why wasn’t he believing her??

“That’s not possible.” Adrien firmly rejoined. “I escorted Marinette to school today. We never saw you, and we were together the whole time.” To Lila’s shock, several heads began nodding in agreement. Shocked out of her act, Lila jerked back, showing her tearless eyes. Lila could hear an increase in muttering, but couldn’t hear what was being said.

“Liar! I tried to greet you at the gate, but she spun around and distracted you! You both obviously ignored me falling!” Lila accused, pointing at them aggressively. Adrien and Marinette glanced at each other, shrugging in confusion.

“I never saw you.” Marinette answered. “At the gate,” Marinette paused thoughtfully, ostensibly thinking. “Ahhh, there was a breeze at the gaze, and I lost my balance for a minute. Then I fell into my Prince’s arms, and I don’t really remember much beyond that.” Marinette flushed and fluttered her eyelashes disgustingly at Adrien.

Lila watched Adrien eat up the duplicitous baker girl’s words as though they were a tasty chocolate croissant. The approving looks the audience wore sent a feeling of angry impotence through Lila. She couldn’t prove they were lying, and she couldn’t keep accusing them without anything to back it up. Lila was jolted out of her thoughts when Marinette dropped down into a crouch to look closer at Lila’s socks.

“This isn’t the right season for wool socks, but it’s good they shielded you.” Marinette informed her. “Now they look terrible, but I’m sure if we just,” Marinette trailed off as she reached forward, folding the socks down in 5 cm segments until the dirty parts were hidden. Lila stood very still, overwhelmed and confused. Surely this was part of some scheme, but Lila couldn’t figure out the angle.

Marinette nodded, satisfied with the socks, before glancing up at Lila. Marinette’s face blanched and she stood up quickly, before leaning forward and whispering to Lila. “You might want to pull your skirt down a bit. Sorry for peeking, but your underwear is really eye catching today.” Marinette grimaced at Lila with an apology written across her face.

Lila tugged at her skirt, adding about 5 cm to the length before realizing she’d just easily done what her enemy told her to! Glancing around, Lila noted the sympathetic looks of the students, and excused herself irritably. Obviously, attracting Adrien was a lost cause today with these bad socks. As the crowd broke up, Lila slipped into the nearest bathroom with a full length mirror.

To Lila’s disgust, the outfit now looked adorable and innocent. Lila swirled her hips, noticing how the skirt and sock combination now seemed sweet and proper for school. If she tugged the skirt down just a bit more, she’d look like those ridiculous anime girls she’d seen in some previous victims’ rooms. Unfortunately, even Lila had to admit this looked much better than her attempt at seductive this morning.

With a sigh, Lila washed her hands and made her way to class. She’d concede defeat, just this once. Just as a favor to that wanna-be designer for helping with her socks, she told herself. Surely her next outfit would sway Adrien away from Marinette. Lila sat down carefully, and began doodling Marinette’s outfit. She just needed to study Marinette’s style a bit more, then surely she would win.

Someday.


End file.
